A resident of the Snowy Mountains region in New South Wales has received conditional bail after allegedly making threats against a prominent federal Labor politician through social media.
Shannon Bennett, aged 53, is charged with utilizing a communication service to threaten to kill or inflict serious injury, following an inquiry conducted by the Australian Federal Police (AFP).
He is scheduled to appear in court again on September 15.
Bennett was brought to court concerning accusations that he threatened Tanya Plibersek, a federal government minister, in a social media message. His arrest by AFP officers took place on Wednesday.
The AFP reported that its National Security Investigations team had been probing this case since July after receiving information about a threatening online statement directed at a federal parliamentarian.
Following the investigation, authorities connected the alleged threat to Bennett and conducted a search of his residence in Berridale on Wednesday, which resulted in the confiscation of his mobile phone for further analysis.
Plibersek refrained from commenting on the situation, noting it is a legal matter currently before the courts.
During a court session on Thursday morning, Judge Te’res Sia granted Bennett conditional bail, acknowledging the serious nature of the allegations against him. The court learned that the charge stemmed from a Facebook post dated July 22.
Judge Sia remarked that while Bennett’s criminal record in Queensland and New South Wales was “not unblemished,” there were “no entries of a similar or identical kind” associated with the current charges.
Under the terms of his bail, Bennett is prohibited from using social media and must avoid any contact with the Social Services minister. Additionally, he cannot come within 100 meters of Plibersek’s office in Sydney or Parliament House in Canberra, and he is required to check in at Cooma Police Station weekly.
Bennett appeared in court via audio-visual link from custody on Thursday and has yet to enter a plea regarding the charges. The potential maximum sentence for the offense is 10 years in prison.
The AFP established its National Security Investigations team in October 2025 to address individuals “inflicting significant harm on Australia’s social cohesion, including threats towards federal parliamentarians.”
Bennett’s next court appearance will be at Queanbeyan Local Court on September 15.
